Roberto Mendoza-Farías

@rmf.bsky.social

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Professor of History, World Languages, and Cultures at Central Michigan University. Opinions are mine.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

The public is not responding to the debate. They are responding to the irresponsible media coverage of the debate. We are back in “but her emails” territory and there is nothing reasonable people—and actual experts—can do about it. Extraordinarily frustrating and depressing.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

The more you read yesterday’s immunity decision, the more appalling it gets. My take: www.nytimes.com/2024/07/02/o...

Opinion | The Supreme Court Creates a Lawless Presidencywww.nytimes.com It is increasingly clear that this court sees itself as something other than a participant in our democratic system.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

God Bless Paul Davies and the @PhillyInquirer: "The only person who should withdraw from the race is Trump...There was only one person at the debate who does not deserve to be running for president. The sooner Trump exits the stage, the better off the country will be."

To serve his country, Donald Trump should leave the race | Editorial Boardwww.inquirer.com Biden had a horrible night Thursday. But the debate about the debate is misplaced. The only person who should withdraw from the race is Trump.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

I wrote a little introduction to the research project I am about to start working on soon ✨ If the title “Datafying Universities: The social construction of organizations as statistical units” sounds inviting or relevant to you—maybe you want to check it out! 👉 jelenabrankovic.net/datafying-un...

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

This is a really incredible project by an equally incredible scholar. Have a look!

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

SULZBERGER: It's been three hours since our last story about Biden being old. What's next? KAHN: Sir, all our political reporters have already written at least three articles about Biden's age. SULZBERGER: You have ten minutes. KAHN: I guess the art critic could weigh in... SULZBERGER: Run it.

President Biden's age "may be nothing but a number," our critic Jason Farago writes. "But the perception of his age has become desperately entangled with cultural connotations of elderliness, formed over centuries, handed down to us through religion and literature and art."

Age and the Image of Capacitywww.nytimes.com President Biden’s toughest opponent may not be his predecessor. It is the cultural meaning, built up through centuries, that we assign to being old.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

40 years ago today, Purple Rain was released, AND Michel Foucault died. In this essay I will

La nostalgia por el ogro filantrópico.

Comparto una reflexión sobre la elección del 2 de junio en México. Una sociedad seducida por el encanto autoritario https://redaccion.nexos.com.mx/una-sociedad-seducida-por-el-encanto-autoritario/

Una sociedad seducida por el encanto autoritarioredaccion.nexos.com.mx Un presidente popular pudo mentir con toda impunidad ante la complacencia acrítica de los medios y la abierta justificación de su sinceridad. Difícil tarea la que vendrá ahora para quienes analizan la...

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

This is an excellent description of the editorial failure behind The NY Times' decision to run Alina Chan's lab leak article. What's the value proposition to the readership of presenting a one-sided argument that most scientists find lacking? Did no editor bother to ask that question?

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

Once more, I realize that people like me (who grew up under authoritarian regimes) have a huge advantage understanding what’s going on in the world. Many of us have tried to warn others in Europe and the US… pero nadie escarmienta en cabeza ajena.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

Eastern Screech Owls, taken back in May. 🌸🦉🦉 I've posted a photo of this cute couple before; this is a wider shot.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

I prefer to remember people on their birthdays than their death days but since I saw folks giving Bourdain his roses today, 6 years after he left us. Here’s a gift link to what I wrote then

Opinion | Anthony Bourdain Was the Kind of ‘Bad Boy’ We Need More Of (Published 2018)www.nytimes.com He was never afraid to speak plainly about injustice or to stand up for marginalized people.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

Common yellowthroat 🪶

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

Claudia Sheinbaum, who as mayor of Mexico City authorized treating 100,000 residents with ivermectin to treat COVID and then engaged in a coverup of the entire operation, was elected president of Mexico.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

Trump’s attorney sent @propublica.bsky.social a cease-and-desist letter demanding this article not be published. The letter warned that if the outlet and its reporters “continue their reckless campaign of defamation, President Trump will evaluate all legal remedies.”

Multiple Trump Witnesses Have Received Significant Financial Benefits From His Businesses, Campaignwww.propublica.org Witnesses in the various criminal cases against the former president have gotten pay raises, new jobs and more. If any benefits were intended to influence testimony, that could be a crime.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

Brazilian constitutional order demonstrating, again, its superiority over the tax tantrum known as the US constitution: felons cannot run for elected positions in Brazil

“The constitution does not bar felons from running for office. Whether he could serve as president from prison is untested.” I mean, of COURSE yay for the conviction. But.

Could Trump go to prison? What happens next after the guilty verdictwww.theguardian.com The ex-president was found guilty on all 34 counts of falsifying business records in the hush money case – what will his punishment be?

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

Liberal pundits operating in the "applaud me for being sympathetic to Trump voters' grievances w/elite liberalism" genre should admit to this much: They're being unfair to liberal voters, who never get this solicitude, and they're ostrich-like in their refusal to grapple with the dark side of MAGA.

Some blame Trump's rise on elite lib failings. Fine, but the story can't end there. What if some Trump voters back him not despite the criminality/threats to inflict suffering on other groups, but *because* of those things? 5/ can't top @adamserwer.bsky.social here newrepublic.com/article/1819...

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

AI customer service is going to be exactly like this.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

Reply to

J. Mijin Cha

"Perhaps we can attempt to show them how this is done. But this requires all of us to go beyond critique and to take on the responsibility of being agents of change, who are willing to engage with people with whom we politically disagree and fashion a path through hate for peace." 😍

Succinct and clear outline our history of authoritarian pulsions: The Deep, Tangled Roots of American Illiberalism www.nytimes.com/2024/05/04/o...

Opinion | The Deep, Tangled Roots of American Illiberalismwww.nytimes.com Our biggest mistake would be to believe that Trumpism is a historical exception.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

This is absolutely reprehensible. Worse than killing kittens. Now they've going full Lancet 1999 on us, with a report full of "believes" and very little data. Atrocious, @nytimes.com, just atrocious.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

I’ve been thinking about how certain we are that we’re right and how to deal with that with humility without abandoning the obligation to strive for what’s right, and I thought about Lillian Gobitis, who died in 2014. She and her brother were expelled from school for not standing for the pledge. /1

Lillian Gobitas Klose, 90, Dies; Stood Against Mandatory Pledge (Published 2014)www.nytimes.com In 1935 Ms. Klose heeded a Jehovah’s Witnesses leader’s call to refuse to recite the pledge in compliance with biblical commands against idolatry.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

The wolf really is at the door, man time.com/6972021/dona...

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

The first two excerpts are from a February 2023 NYT column. The second two are from a NYT column published yesterday. The same columnist -- Pamela Paul -- wrote both. 14 months apart. Just a mind-blowing lack of self-awareness.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

No no no this can't be right I was told that migrants were destroying law and order in America. www.axios.com/2024/04/16/h...

Number of homicides plunges in major cities after pandemic-era surgewww.axios.com The nation is on pace to see one of the most significant declines in homicides since Obama was in office .

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

This is real. This is what the House GOP is doing next week.

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

The critical thing about this entire episode is the contrast with how GOP rhetoric is treated by the press. Slandering Democrats and city dwellers is normal, but the reverse can't happen. Implicitly it's because of the power rural areas hold federally, but it's been laundered into a moral principle.

It's instructive to compare the mythological version of the "Basket of Deplorables" speech to the actual remarks, which were exactly the kind of "we must understand the valid roots of Trump support" argument that everyone ever since has insisted that nobody else has been wise enough to make

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

the press mythologized this knob as a supergenius engineer for 15 years, and now that he's been outed as an outright nazi con man the best they can do is "eh he's a little bit of this, he's a little bit of that, good and bad, who's to say?"

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

Comparto este artículo que contribuye a documentar la subordinación del presidente de México ante los militares. Brutal. https://www.proceso.com.mx/reportajes/2024/3/31/operacion-silencio-asi-el-ejercito-oculto-informacion-sobre-el-caso-ayotzinapa-326425.html

Operación silencio: Así el Ejército ocultó información sobre el caso Ayotzinapawww.proceso.com.mx Testimonios en poder de la FGR apuntan a que la Sedena ordenó resguardar material sensible sobre la desaparición de los 43 de Ayotzinapa y mentir a la Comisión para la Verdad y Acceso a la Justicia de...

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Roberto Mendoza-Farías

So much hinged on Republicans’ failed repeal in 2017 — it catalyzed efforts to defend the law, and led to a wave of new Democratic politicians like Andy Kim and Lauren Underwood unseating key members of the House GOP. You can see the ACA’s polling turn around, too.

A decade ago, just one-third of Americans had favorable views of the Affordable Care Act. Now it's got near 60% approval, has helped 45 million Americans get health coverage — and is a major part of Biden's campaign. I spoke to key people behind the ACA and its transformation. Here’s our story.

Obamacare once cost Democrats elections. Now Biden’s hoping to win on it.www.washingtonpost.com Democrats used to struggle to defend the ACA. Now even Trump, who pushed repeal, scrambles when accused of wanting to end it.